


The Only Souls I See Are Ghosts

by AbandonedSon



Category: The Pacific - Fandom
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Gore, Nightmares, PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-04
Updated: 2013-07-04
Packaged: 2017-12-17 16:18:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/869513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbandonedSon/pseuds/AbandonedSon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He sees Sledge sinking in the mud, the land reclaiming what it’s owed. He pushes harder, dragging heaving breaths into his lungs. Sledge is almost gone, his bright eyes empty and lifeless. He can’t breathe, he can’t breathe, he can’t…</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Only Souls I See Are Ghosts

**Author's Note:**

> Just something I found in an old notebook and didn't hate.

Snafu dreams in disjointed fragments; bullets cascading down, mixing with the never ending rain. The Pacific sunrise bleeds across the sky in improbable shades of red and gold. Sledgehammer’s eyes, dark and secretive, able to see straight through him. The scene shimmers and shakes, changing until he’s back in Okinawa, surrounded by mud and blood; dead Japs and Marines alike piled knee high. 

A sharp glint of gold catches his eye through the rain, and he watches as Sledgehammer falls in slow motion, an arterial spray of red spurting forth from his chest. Snafu feels the land shake, heart leaping into his throat as he watches Sledge fall lifeless in the mud. He rushes forward, feet sinking with every step, the thick mud sucking at his boots. The land itself seemed to be fighting against him, dragging him down amid the blood and the bodies. 

He sees Sledge sinking in the mud, the land reclaiming what it’s owed. He pushes harder, dragging heaving breaths into his lungs. Sledge is almost gone, his bright eyes empty and lifeless. He can’t breathe, he can’t breathe, he can’t…

“Snaf, wake up! Wake up!”

He comes back to himself in a rush, eyes wide and chest heaving. He blinks, and the rain-slicked Okinawa shithole disappears, and he’d back in their bedroom, in Louisiana. 

Sledge is looking at him, skin turned silver in the moonlight. He rests a hand over Snafu’s racing heart, looming over him.

“You’re alright, I got you.” He whispers, hands roaming over Snafu’s heated skin. “It’s fine, we’re fine.”

Snafu reaches up, arm wrapping around Sledge as he flips them, burying his face in the crook of Sledge’s shoulder. It’s quiet but for the sound of their breath, and fabric sliding over skin. 

“Fuckin’ Japs,” he whispers into Sledge’s skin, closing his eyes as he grounds himself in the moment. He’s home, they’re home, and in Louisiana. They’re not in the Pacific, they’re fine, Sledge is alive and warm beneath him.

Eugene understands, stays quiet and runs his hands over Snafu’s broad shoulders. Snafu breathes out again, his heart beat slowly settling into the usual lazy thump, the fading adrenaline leaving him feeling tired and sluggish. He presses an open mouth kiss to the crook of Sledge’s neck, revelling in the familiar taste of skin. Sledge hums and tilts his head slightly, giving Snafu more room. 

“Wha’ time s’it?” he murmurs, settling against Sledge completely, pressing them together as much as he could. Even after a few years, it still comes as a surprise that Snafu has this, that he’s allowed to touch and taste and love Eugene. There are some moments he just has to stop and process this. 

“Late. Or early, I guess. Y’think you can sleep?” Sledge asks, running a gentle hand through Snafu’s hair. 

“Yeah, yeah.” He settles down, arm wrapped over Sledge’s waist, face pressed to his collarbone. “G’night Sledgehammer.”

Snafu drifts off to the feeling of being warm and safe and, most of all, loved. The Pacific is far far away, and he _never_ has to go back. He got Sledgehammer. That's all he’s gonna need.


End file.
